The Playboy of the Western World

The Playboy of the Western World (1907) [1], is a three-act play written by Irish playwright J.M. Synge.

The original text

First performed at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, on 26 January 1907, .

Translations and adaptations

The play is one of the classic plays of the twentieth century and has been adapted and translated many times.

Bobaas van die Boendoe by André P. Brink

Freely adapted into Afrikaans by André P. Brink () as Bobaas van die Boendoe ("Top-Dog of the Bundu"). Brink relocates the Irish play to a "coloured" fishing community on the Western Cape coast, and uses the local Afrikaans dialect nowadays referred to as "Kaaps".

The text was first performed by PACOFS in 1972 and published by Human & Rousseau in 1973. (For performances of the Afrikaans version by Brink, see Bobaas van die Boendoe)

South African performance history of all stage versions

This Afrikaans version has been produced many times by both professional and amateur companies, as well as by university students and schools.

1972: First produced by PACOFS in the Civic Theatre, Bloemfontein, directed by Brink, starring Trudie Taljaard, Anton Welman, Louise Mollett-Prinsloo.

1980: Staged by PACT, directed by Louis van Niekerk, with Amor Tredoux (Magriet Vlooi), Pierre van Pletzen (Seef Stilstype), Jan Prinsloo (Migiel Vlooi), Eric Nobbs (Joppie Pens), Christo Gerlach (Jimmy Flinters), Gerben Kamper (Kris Kaiing), Christine Basson (Waailit Willekat), Riana Wilkens (Sera Fyndraai), Bettie Kemp (Bekkie Bodem), Annalise Bosch (Soesie Snuif), Trudi Lamprecht ( Antjie Asjas) and Don Lamprecht ( Oubaas Kaiing).

1985: Staged by PACOFS in the Civic Theatre (??), Bloemfontein.

1992: Produced by the Bellville Afrikaanse Toneelvereniging (BAT), directed by Johan van der Merwe

1995: Produced by the Breughel Teater in Stellenbosch and at the KKNK, directed by Ben de Haeck.

2003: Produced by the drama students of the University of the Free State in , directed by Niel van Niekerk in the Wynand Mouton Theatre.

2010: Produced by drama students of the University of the Free State , directed by Nico Luwes in the Scaena Theatre.

Sources

PACOFS Drama 25 Years, 1963-1988.

PACT theatre programme, 1980.

Die Volksblad, Tuesday 16 September 2003[2]

Toneelvereniging dring deur na eindronde, Die Burger, 1 October 1992[3]

Klein Karoo Fees stel vol program bekend, Die Burger, 11 February 1995[4]

Temple Hauptfleisch, Carnival Shakespeare...(etc), Shakespeare in Southern Africa Vol. 3, 1989.90-101.[5]

Petru & Carel Trichardt theatre programme collection.

Performance history in South Africa

1963: Presented by PACT in the Civic Theatre, Johannesburg and the National Theatre, Pretoria and taken on tour, September -November. Directed by Victor Melleney, settings by Cazik Dubinski, costumes by Gladys Haupt. The cast included James White, Arthur Hall, Siegfried Mynhardt, Fiona Fraser, Patricia Sanders, Patrick Mynhardt, Ronald Wallace, Taffy Griffiths, Ziona Garfield, Reinet Maasdorp, Paddy Canavan, Richard Daneel and others. Settings by Cazik Dubinski, costumes by Gladys Haupt.

1971: Directed by Beth Dickerson for the Rhodes University Drama Department starring Chris Weare, Janet du Plessis, Anthony Akerman, Heather Murie and Lois Butlin.

1976: Staged by CAPAB, directed by David Crichton, with Lois Butlin, Nicholas Ellenbogen, Philip Godawa and Peter Krummeck in the cast.

Sources

PACT report 1963/64.

The Argus 12 April 1976.

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